A Grinchy Day!

 Greetings! Happy Wednesday! I hope everyone is as excited as the children are for Christmas. Their excitement was very hard to contain today! 

In Religion class we reviewed the Christmas story by sequencing the events. Then, using foam stickers, the children designed their own Nativity scene. 

The remainder of the morning focused around the book How the Grinch Stole Christmas. After reading the story, we sequenced the events. Then we wrote about what we would do to make the Grinch grin. We added our writing to a craft. Finally, to help us practice our Math skills, we completed a Grinch theme write the room activity. The students walked around the room finding an addition problem and writing the answer. 

This afternoon to keep our Grinch theme going, we watched How the Grinch Stole Christmas. We all enjoyed the movie. 

Have a great night! 

A Visit from Santa!

 Greetings! Happy Tuesday! I hope everyone enjoyed their day! The highlight of our day came this morning. Santa came for a visit. Everyone was able to sit on Santa's lap and tell him one thing they want for Christmas. When finished, Santa gave us a candy cane! The excitement continues to build! 

In Religion class today, we wrapped up our chapter on Mary saying yes to God. That led us into the Christmas story. We read and colored a book on the birth of Jesus. 

In Language Arts class, we wrote what we would do if we were an elf. 

Then, we read the classic Christmas story, The Polar Express. After reading it, we sequenced the events in the story. We also wrote about what we would want for the first gift of Christmas. 

In Math class today, we practiced adding to 20. The students worked with a partner and played memory matching problems to answers. 

We had a special Science class today. We wrapped up our chapter on sound. We reviewed how sounds are made when something vibrates. 

Have a great night! 

Christmas Week 2022!

 Greetings! Welcome to Christmas Week 2022! I just love the enthusiasm and excitement this week. It makes me wish I was a kid again! 

In Religion class today we talked about how Mary went to visit her cousin Elizabeth after the angel Gabriel came to her. 

We are not beginning a new week of learning in Language Arts this week. Instead, we are going to review what we have learned and participate in fun Christmas literacy activities. Today, we read Santa's Stuck, a funny fiction story about Santa getting stuck in a chimney. After reading the story, we wrote about what we would do if Santa was stuck in our chimney. We added our writing to a craft. 

In Math class today, we learned two new addition strategies. The first one has us recognizing doubles facts and doubles plus 1 facts to solve problems. The second strategy reminded us that we can add in any order. With all of the strategies learned, we will pick our favorite strategy to help us add. 

This afternoon we were treated to a play performed by students in our Junior High department. They did a wonderful job. First grade gives the performance two thumbs up! 

Here is a picture from our Santa art on Friday. 

Have a great night! 

Santa Art!

 Greetings! Happy Friday! Thank you so much for a great flexible instruction day yesterday. It was nice to be back with the children today. I missed them yesterday. 

At Mass this morning, Fr. Brian reminded us of our mission to know, love, and serve God. 

We wrapped up another week of learning in Language Arts today. We practiced using our sight words in sentences. We also practiced reading soft c, soft g, and -dge words and words with inflectional endings when the final e is dropped. After that we wrote sentences using our sight words. 

This afternoon in Language Arts, we practiced finding rhyming words in poems. We took our weekly assessment and identified whether sentences were past or future tense. 

In Math class today, we practiced a new addition strategy. We worked on making ten and then adding. We used linking cubes to help us make 10 before adding. 

In Science class, we talked about pitch and volume. We learned that pitch is how high or low a sound is and that volume is how loud or soft a sound is. 

We ended our day with Art class. Today we made Santa Claus. The students were very excited to use messy glue and cotton balls. I'll post pictures next week once everything has dried. 

Have a great weekend! 

The Gingerbread Man!

 Greetings! Happy Wednesday! I hope everyone is having a good week! 

In Religion class today, we talked about the third week of Advent. We talked about how the pink candle means joy and how we can bring joy to people this week. After our Advent talk, we read the story of the angel Gabriel visiting Mary and how Mary said yes to God. 

In Language Arts, we reviewed our oral vocabulary words. We also practiced reading soft c, soft g, and -dge words. We also practiced spelling and reading words with inflectional endings where the final e is dropped. In addition, we practiced our sight words. To help us build our fluency and comprehension skills, we partner read a story in our decodable reader booklets. We also read The Gingerbread Man, a story the children have been waiting all week for. After reading the story, we wrote cause and effect examples from it. 

This afternoon in Language Arts, we reviewed verb tenses. We practiced sorting sentences into past and future. We then sorted verbs into past, present, and future tenses. 

In Math class today, we began our chapter on addition and subtraction within 20. We will begin with addition strategies. Today, we learned how to add by counting on. We used our number line to help us. We start at the biggest number and then count on to find the answer. 

Just a reminder that tomorrow is a flexible instruction day. Be safe! 

Secret Santa Shop!

 Greetings! Happy Tuesday! Today was an exciting day in first grade. It was Secret Santa Shop Day! And, our other first grade friends joined us for a day of learning. 

We had lots of fun shopping at the Secret Santa shop. The children loved picking out presents for family and friends. They were so excited to leave with their gifts today. Thank you to all of the parents who volunteered to help the students shop and wrap their gifts! 

In Religion class today, we talked about how Mary was not born with original sin and how she never sinned. 

We continued with our week of learning in Language Arts. We reviewed our oral vocabulary words from yesterday and learned three new words (eventually, foolish, and timid). Next, we worked on making predictions as we read a folktale about a foolish rabbit. Following that, we used our letter tiles to spell and read soft c, soft g, and -dge words. After that, we learned how to spell words with an inflectional ending when the word ends in e (drop the final e before adding the ending). Then, we practiced using our sight words in sentences. We ended the morning focusing on our comprehension skills; this week we are working on cause and effect. We reread The Nice Mitten and wrote cause and effect examples from it. We did the same as we read our decodable reader. 

This afternoon in Language Arts we learned about future tense verbs. We learned that future tense verbs have the word will with it. 

In Math class, we took our test on the numbers to 20. Tomorrow we will begin to learn addition strategies to 20. 

Have a good night! 

A New Week!

 Greetings! Happy Monday! This is our last full week of school before Christmas break. The excitement of Christmas continues to build each day! 

In Religion class today we wrapped up our chapter on the prophets. 

We began a new week of learning in Language Arts; this week we will be reading folktales. We began by learning two new oral vocabulary words (hero and tale). We then worked on making predictions as we read The Interrupting Chicken. After that we practiced rhyming. Following that we learned how to blend and read soft c, soft g, and -dge words. Next, we practiced our sight words. We ended the morning by putting our skills to work as we read The Nice Mitten. 

This afternoon in Language Arts we learned about past tense verbs. We also learned about cause and effect. We identified which sentences we causes and which ones were effects. 

In Math class today, we reviewed the concepts we learned with the numbers to 20. We will take our chapter test tomorrow. 

Just a reminder that tomorrow we will visit the Secret Santa shop. Have a good night! 

Reindeer Fun!

 Greetings! Happy Friday! I hope everyone had a great week! Hopefully the weekend won't fly by. 

At Mass this morning, Fr. Brian reminded us to turn to Mary and Jesus during this season of Advent. 

We wrapped up another week of learning in Language Arts. We used our oral vocabulary words in sentences. To review long i words and plurals, we played BINGO. After that we wrote sentences using our sight words and took our weekly assessment. 

Then it was time for some new learning in Language Arts. We learned that the letters dge make the /j/ sound. We practiced reading several dge words and then read a decodable reader that featured these words. 

We also took time today to practice our writing skills. We wrote about why we would be a good choice to pull Santa's sleigh. We added that to a craft. Have a look: 

In Math class today, we reviewed place value concepts. Today, we practiced drawing pictures of base ten blocks for various numbers to 20. 

In Science class, we learned that sounds are made when something vibrates. We did an experiment to see which vibration was the easiest to feel when we whisper, talk, or yell. We discovered that when we yell, we feel the vibration the easiest. 

We ended our day with Art class. Today, we made Rudolph looking at the snow. They look so adorable! 

Have a great weekend! 

Map of the World!

 Greetings! Happy Thursday! I hope everyone is doing well tonight! 

To celebrate the Feast of Immaculate Conception, we attended Mass this morning. Fr. Brian reminded us of Mary's great yes and of our need to pray to her for guidance. 

In Language Arts class, we reviewed our oral vocabulary words, read long i words and plurals, and practiced our sight words. We partner read a story in our decodable reader booklets before reading a nonfiction piece about plants. After reading our nonfiction piece, we completed pages in our close reading that focused on sequencing how plants grow. Finally, we practiced using present tense verbs in sentences. 

In Math class today, we used our critical thinking skills to solve problems. We put numbers in order from greatest to least and then wrote how we knew which was the greatest number. Next, we added numbers to given numbers to make a pattern. Finally, we used our reasoning skills to organize letters based on clues. 

We ended our day with Social Studies. Today, we learned that there are 7 continents and 4 oceans. We created a map of the world using a paper plate and pictures of the continents. 

Have a great night! 

Being Like St. Nicholas!

 Greetings! Happy Wednesday! I don't know about you, but this week is flying by! 

In Religion class today we watched a video on the life of St. Nicholas. Afterwards, we talked about how he helped people and how we can help people too. We gave numerous ways we can help others in need. 

In Language Arts class, we reviewed our oral vocabulary words, segmented words into sounds, read long i words and plurals, and our sight words. We then worked on our fluency and comprehension. We partner read a story in our decodable reader booklets. We also read another play The Big Yuca Plant. The students really enjoyed reading the different character parts. After reading the play, we sequenced the events in the story. 

This afternoon in Language Arts, we practiced using present tense verbs in sentences. We also practiced writing the titles of plays correctly. 

In Math class today, we continued to work with number patterns. We practiced solving for the missing numbers in patterns using our linking cubes and number lines. 

Have a great night! 

Number Patterns!

 Greetings! Happy St. Nicholas Day! To celebrate, Jingles brought the students candy canes. I hope everyone had a great day!

We began our day by going to Adoration. We spent some quiet time praying and talking to Jesus, a perfect way to bein our day. 

We continued with our learning in Language Arts. We began by reviewing our oral vocabulary words we learned yesterday and then learned three new words (assist, grasped, and spied). Next, we worked on making predictions as we read a folktale about a giant turnip. Following that, we used our letter tiles to spell and read long i words. Then, we learned how to spell plurals when a word ends in e. After that we practiced using our sight words in sentences. We ended our morning focusing on comprehension; this week we are focusing on sequencing. We reread Time to Plant and sequenced the events in the story. We did the same thing as we read our decodable reader. 

This afternoon we practiced using present tense verbs in sentences. We also began some Christmas writing. We are writing about the perfect gift for someone else. 

In Math class today, we worked on solving number patterns. We used our linking cubes and number lines to help us solve the missing number. The students did well recognizing the patterns. 

Have a great night! 

Blooming Readers!

 Greetings! Happy Monday! I hope everyone had a great weekend! I loved hearing this morning all what the children did and what their elves are up to. It is such an exciting time of the year. 

In Religion class today we talked about how John the Baptist was the last prophet. We talked about how he prepared the people for Jesus. 

We began a new week of learning in Language Arts; this week we will be reading about plants. We began by learning two new oral vocabulary words (bloom and sprout). Next, we worked on making predictions as we read Mystery Vine. Following that, we learned how to blend and read long i words, words like bike and dime. Next, we learned our new sight words. We ended our morning by practicing all of our new skills as we read the play, Time to Plant. The students really enjoyed reading this play. 

This afternoon in Language Arts we learned about present tense verbs, ad we practiced using them in sentences. We also worked on our writing skills. Today we wrote the steps in how to plant a seed. 

In Math class today, we learned how to find 1 less or 2 less than a number. We began with our linking cubes before transitioning to mental math. 

Jingles was up to no good today. He got himself tangled in some Christmas lights he brought! 

Have a good night! 

O Christmas Tree!

 Greetings! Happy Friday! Today was an exciting day to end the week. I brought in our classroom Christmas tree. The children were so excited to decorate it. They did a fantastic job! 

At Mass this morning, Fr. Brian reminded us that during this season of Advent,  we need to turn to God and ask him to help us get ready for Jesus. 

We wrapped up another week of learning in Language Arts. We used our oral vocabulary words in sentences, practiced reading long a words, wrote sentences using our sight words, and took our weekly assessment. To help us practice reading long a words, the students did a write the room activity where they walked around the room to find long a words and write the words on a sheet. We also finished writing our how-to piece on how to make a PBJ sandwich. 

In Math class today, we practiced telling one more or two more than a number. I was impressed with how fast the children were able to write the answers. 

In Science class, we wrapped up our chapter on animal communication. We reviewed why animals communicate and how they communicate. 

Christmas tree was the the theme of the day in first grade and that spilled over into Art class. Using sequins and glitter glue, the students decorated their own Christmas tree. They also got to add snow falling around their tree if they wanted to. 

Have a great weekend! 

Hello December!

 Greetings! Happy December! The excitement of the holidays are in the air. Today, Jingles, our elf, brought the students stickers. It was neat watching the children say thank you to him. 

In Religion class today we continued learning about Moses. Today we learned that God called Moses by appearing to him in the burning bush. We also learned that God gave Moses the 10 Commandments. By following the Commandments we prepare ourselves to welcome Jesus. 

We continued our week of learning in Language Arts. Today we practiced our oral vocabulary words, read long a words, and spelled contractions with the word not. To help us with our fluency we partner read a story from our decodable reader booklets. We also read a nonfiction piece about the history of clocks; we completed pages in our close reading companion that help us build our key details skill. 

This afternoon in Language Arts, we practiced finding verbs in sentences. We also began writing a how-to piece. We are writing the steps in making a PBJ sandwich. 

In Math class today we practiced organizing numbers from least to greatest and greatest to least. The students loved doing this. 

This morning we took our first STAR test. The students did very well with the Math test; I am so pleased at how hard they worked. We have one more test to take. 

Have a great night! 

The End of November!

 Greetings! It is hard to believe that today was the last day in November! This month went right by us. 

In Religion class today, we watched and read the story of baby Moses being left by his mother in a basket. We talked about how God had a special plan for Moses at such a young age. We also talked about how Moses is our first prophet. 

In Language Arts class, we reviewed our oral vocabulary words. We also practiced reading reading long a words and our sight words. In addition, we learned how to spell and read words with the contraction for not. To help us build our fluency and comprehension skills, we partner read a story from our decodable reader booklets. We also read On My Way to School. After reading this story, we talked about and illustrated the characters, setting, and events. 

This afternoon in Language Arts, we practiced using verbs in sentences. We also generated a list of action verbs associated with a superhero. We wrote 6 words around a superhero. We will be designing our superhero tomorrow. 

In Math class today, we practiced identifying the greatest and least number in a set. We also talked about the > and < symbols. We talked about how they look like an alligator's mouth and how an alligator will always have its mouth open to the bigger number. 

I'm sure the children told you that our classroom elf arrived yesterday, Everyday, we will be keeping a journal and writing about where Jingles is at in our classroom! 

Have a good evening! Stay warm! 

Happy Thanksgiving!

 Greetings! Today was a fun day to wrap up our Thanksgiving activities. We are all excited to eat good foods and see our families over our holiday break. 

In Religion class today we continued our talk about Advent. We reviewed how Advent is a time for waiting. We also talked about the Advent wreath. We made an Advent wreath. The students brought home paper flames to add to their wreath each week during this season. 

At Thanksgiving time, we are reminded to take time to give thanks for all that we have. Today, we made a thankful turkey. On the feathers we wrote about things and people we are thankful for. We added our feathers to the back of an applesauce cup. Aren't they cute? 

Today we read Turkey Trouble, a funny story about a turkey who tries different disguises so that he doesn't become part of the farmer's feast. After reading the story, we sequenced the different disguises turkey tried. We also created a different disguise for him. 

Before we knew it, it was time for lunch and then dismissal. I hope everyone has a blessed holiday filled with fun, laughter, and new memories. See you next week! 

~Happy Thanksgiving! 

A Thanksgiving Feast!

 Greetings! Happy Tuesday! I hope everyone is doing well and getting ready to celebrate Thanksgiving on Thursday! 

In Religion class today we wrapped up our chapter on Noah and Abraham obeying God and waiting for the Savior to come. We then switched our focus to Advent. We learned that Advent is a time of waiting and preparing our hearts to welcome Jesus at Christmas. 

In Language Arts, we practiced reading long a words. We then learned our new sight words. Following that, we read Nate the Snake is Late which helped us practice reading long a words and our sight words in context. Finally, we identified verbs in a sentence. 

In Math class today, we continued to look at the numbers to 20. We played memory with a partner where we matched the number with its word. We then took a closer look at a number to 20. Each student was given a turkey with a number on it. He/she had to draw a picture for that number, write out the number word, show the number in a ten frame, and write a number sentence for it. 

This afternoon we had our very own first grade Thanksgiving feast. We watched "A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving". Afterwards, we had our own Peanuts Thanksgiving which consisted of toast, popcorn, jelly beans, and pretzel sticks. We really enjoyed our feast. 

Just a reminder that tomorrow is an early dismissal. Have a good night! 

Magic e Words!

 Greetings! Welcome to Thanksgiving week in first grade! This week we will be celebrating Thanksgiving while learning new things. 

In Religion class today we read the story of Abraham and Isaac. We learned that Abraham really trusted God and had great faith. 

In Language Arts, we began a new week of learning; this week we will be reading about time. We learned two new oral vocabulary words (immediately and schedule). We then worked on making predictions as we read A Second is a Hiccup. Next, we learned how to blend and read long a words spelled with a magic e, words like cape and take. We ended class by working in our small reading groups. 

In Math class today, we began a new chapter which focuses on the numbers 11-20. We took time to build each number using our linking cubes and ten frames. We learned that it is easier to make 10 and then count on. We also wrote number sentences for each number. Here is our completed chart. 

This afternoon in Language Arts we looked at the First Thanksgiving. We learned that the Pilgrims and Indians had a feast that lasted for three days. We looked at what they did and what they ate by writing about it in a booklet. 

We also took time today to finish our Indian, or Flint, corn from Friday. They turned out awesome. 

Have a great night! 

More Pilgrim Fun!

 Greetings! Happy Friday! I hope everyone made it home safely tonight. It sure has been a tricky getting home this week. 

At Mass this morning, Fr. Brian talked to us about cleansing our bodies meaning that we need to tell God we are sorry and receive the sacrament of Reconciliation. 

We wrapped up another week of learning in Language Arts. Today we used our oral vocabulary words in sentences, read words with digraphs and with the inflectional ending -es, wrote sentences using our sight words, and took our weekly assessment. 

In Math class today we took our chapter test on shapes. Next week we will begin our chapter that focuses on the numbers to 20. 

In Science class today, we talked about how animals communicate. We learn that they communicate by using a part of their body or by making noise. 

Our afternoon was centered on Thanksgiving. Today, we made a Pilgrim and wrote about something we would have done if we were a Pilgrim.

We then learned about the Wampanoag and how they helped the Pilgrims. We created a flipbook about them. We are in the process of making Flint (or Indian) corn; we'll finish that on Monday. 

For Art class today, we created a Pilgrim Pete the Cat. They turned out cute. 

Have a great weekend! 

Pilgrim Fun!

 Greetings! Happy Thursday! I don't know about you but this week has gone extremely fast. It is hard to believe that tomorrow is Friday. 

In Religion class today we talked about how God promised Abraham descendants as numerous as the stars. 

We continued our week of learning in Language Arts. We reviewed our oral vocabulary words, read words with digraphs, words with the inflectional ending -es, and our sight words. To help build our fluency we partner read a story in our decodable reader booklets. We also read a nonfiction piece about the directions and completed pages in our close reading companion that had us practicing using the directions. Finally, we reviewed irregular plurals. 

In Math class today we reviewed all that we have learned about shapes. Tomorrow we will be taking our chapter test. 

Our Social Studies class today focused on the Pilgrims. We created a flipbook were we wrote about what Pilgrims ate, wore, and did and where they lived. We will continue our Pilgrim activities tomorrow. 

Have a great night! 

Critical Thinkers!

 Greetings! Happy Wednesday! I hope everyone is having a great week. 

Today in Religion class we began to learn the story of Abraham. Today we talked about how God told Abraham to move to a new country. Being obedient to God, Abraham did as he was asked. We also talked about ways we can be obedient just like Abraham. 

In Language Arts, we reviewed our oral vocabulary words, segmented words into sounds, read words with digraphs, words with the inflectional ending -es, and our sight words. We also worked on our fluency as we partner read a story from our decodable reader booklets. In addition, we read Fun With Maps, a nonfiction story looking at different kinds of maps. After reading this story, we completed pages in our close reading companion that focused on the main topic and key details from the story. 

This afternoon in Language Arts, we practiced sorting nouns based on whether they named one or more than one. 

In Math class today we used our critical thinking skills to solve problems. The students walked around the room looking for objects with various shapes. We also used our thinking caps to solve problems. 

Today's Thanksgiving lesson focused on the Pilgrims. We read two stories today: one about the day in the life of a Pilgrim boy and the other about the day in the life of a Pilgrim girl. We will continue our Pilgrim lesson tomorrow. 

Have a great night! 

Mayflower Voyage!

 Greetings! Happy Tuesday! I hope everyone made it home safely tonight. I'm not sure if we all shared in the children's excitement for the snow. They could not wait to go home and play in it. 

We began our day by going to church for Adoration. We spent some quiet time talking and praying to Jesus. 

We continued our week of learning in Language Arts today. We reviewed our oral vocabulary words we learned yesterday and then learned three new words (model, height, and separate). We then worked on rereading as we read a nonfiction story about different kinds of maps. After that we used our letter tiles to spell and read words with the digraphs ch, tch, wh, and ph. Following that we learned how to make words that end in ch, sh, tch, s, ss, x, or z mean more than one; we do that by adding the -es ending to the word. Next, we practiced using our sight words in sentences. We ended our morning by focusing on our comprehension skills; this week we are looking at main idea and key details. We reread Which Way on the Map? and then wrote its main idea and key details from the story. 

This afternoon in Language Arts we read our decodable reader and wrote about its main idea and key details. We also practiced writing plurals especially for words that change to mean more than one. 

In Math class today we continued to look at patterns; today we focused on patterns that involve solid shapes. 

We ended our day with some Thanksgiving fun. Today we wrote facts that we learned about the Mayflower. We also created a Mayflower craft. Here is the craft. 

Have a safe and warm night! 

Fun With Maps!

 Greetings! Happy Monday! I hope everyone enjoyed our four day weekend. I loved hearing about all that the children did over those days. It was a well spent break. 

Today, we got to experience a giant map of North America and learn about the features on the map. Thank you to the Home and School Association who brought the map to the school. 

In Religion class today we talked about how the people waited for Jesus. Today, we heard the story of Noah. We learned that Noah followed God's command to build an ark and put the animals on it before God flooded the land. 

We began a new week of learning in Language Arts; this week we will be reading about maps. We began by learning two new oral vocabulary words (locate and route). We then worked on rereading as we read Me on the Map. After that, we practiced blending and reading words with the digraphs ch, tch, wh, and ph. Following that we learned our new sight words. We ended our morning by reading Which Way on the Map? which helped us practice our new phonics skills. 

This afternoon in Language Arts we learned about irregular plurals, words like men, women, children, and people. 

In Math class today, we learned about patterns. We used our pattern blocks to make patterns and then drew our patterns in our book. 

We ended the day with some Thanksgiving learning. Over the course of the next week and a half, we will be learning about the first Thanksgiving. Today, we learned about the Mayflower by watching a short video about it. 

Have a great night! 

A Friday on a Wednesday!

 Greetings! Happy Wednesday! Today was our Friday for the week. I think everyone is looking forward to our four day weekend! 

In Religion class today we wrapped up our chapter on Adam and Eve and the first sin. We reviewed what happened when they sinned and what God promised to send to his people. 

We wrapped up another week of learning in Language Arts today. We reviewed our oral vocabulary words, practiced reading words with digraphs and closed syllable words, and wrote sentences using our sight words. We also took our weekly assessment. 

To help prepare us for using the Accelerated Reader program, we read a story and took a practice quiz. We all agreed that the quiz was easy. We are looking forward to using the program to build our reading skills. 

In Math class today, we looked around our classroom to see all of the shapes. We identified both flat and solid shapes. 

Have a great weekend! Enjoy the break! 

Shape Pizzas!

 Greetings! Happy Tuesday! I hope everyone had a great day! 

In Religion class today we talked about how God promised to send us a Savior who would open the gates of Heaven for us. We know that Savior to be Jesus. 

In Language Arts class we reviewed our oral vocabulary words, practiced reading words with the digraphs sh, th, and ng and words with closed syllables. We also practiced our sight words by playing a favorite game "Don't Draw the Turkey". To help build our fluency we partner read a story from our decodable reader booklets. We also read a nonfiction piece about kids helping in neighborhoods. After reading that story we completed pages in our close reading companion that focused on finding key details in the text. We ended the morning by practicing writing proper nouns correctly. 

In Math class today, we looked at designs using our solid shapes. We identified the number of each solid shape used in the design. After that, it was time for some Math shape fun. The students created their own Shape Pizza. The added circles (pepperoni), squares (mushrooms), trapezoids (peppers), rectangles (onions), and triangles (sausage). The students had lots of fun cooking their own pizzas. 

Have a great night! 

Honoring Veterans!

 Greetings! Happy Monday! I hope everyone had a great weekend. I loved hearing about all the adventures the children did this weekend. 

In Religion class today, we talked about how we are all born with original sin and how that original sin is washed away when we are baptized. 

We continued with our week of learning in Language Arts today. We reviewed our oral vocabulary words, segmented words into sounds, read words with the digraphs sh, th, and ng, words with closed syllables, and read our sight words. To help build our fluency and comprehension, we partner read a story from our decodable reader booklets. We also read Nell's Books. After reading that story, we drew pictures of the characters, setting, and events in the story. 

This afternoon in Language Arts we practiced writing proper nouns correctly. We also worked on our writing skills. Today, our writing focused on Veteran's Day; we wrote about why veterans are heroes. Here is a picture of our writing project:

In Math class we used our pattern blocks to make designs; our lesson today focused on flat shape designs. The students did a great job making various designs. 

Here are pictures from our Art class along with our turkey writing we did last Friday. Enjoy! 

Have a great night! 

Turkey Fun!

 Greetings! Happy Friday! Today was a busy day to wrap up the week in first grade. 

At Mass this morning, Fr. Brian talked to us about the importance of not losing God's grace. He reminded us to always be faithful to God. 

In Language Arts, we reviewed the digraphs sh and th by sorting pictures based on sounds. We also practiced sorting common nouns and proper nouns. Finally, we did some Thanksgiving writing. Today we imagined we had a pet turkey and wrote about what we like to do with our pet turkey. We added a directive turkey drawing to our writing. 

In Math class, we reviewed flat and solid shapes by playing memory; the students worked in groups to match pictures of shapes with their names. 

In Science, we began a new series today. Today's lesson focused on how animals communicate. We learned that sounds are made when something vibrates. We talked about all the different sounds animals make to communicate. 

We ended our day with Art. Today we did one of my favorite Art projects. We made a giant turkey. Once everything dries, I will post pictures. 

Have a great weekend! 

Fun With Solid Shapes

 Greetings! Happy Thursday! I hope everyone is enjoying this beautiful weather. It's hard to believe that the holiday season is upon us with the warm weather we are having. 

In Religion today, we talked about the consequences that occurred when Adam and Eve sinned. We talked about how they had to leave the Garden of Eden, work for everything, lost God's grace, would die, and could not be near wild animals. 

We continued with our week of learning in Language Arts. Today we reviewed the oral vocabulary words we learned yesterday and then learned three new words (connection, rely, and enjoy). Then we worked on rereading for details as we read about a biblioburro in Columbia. After that, we used our letter tiles to spell and read words with the digraphs sh, th, and ng. Next, we learned how to break a word into syllables, read each syllable, and put the syllables together to read a word. Following that we practiced using our sight words in sentences. We ended the morning focusing on our comprehension skills; this week we are focusing on characters, setting, and plot. We reread Thump Thump Helps Out and wrote about the characters, setting, and plot. We did the same as we read our decodable reader. 

In Math class today, we explored solid shapes. We looked to see whether we could stack, roll, or slide each shape. 

We ended our day with Social Studies. Today we wrapped up our unit on communities by reviewing what we learned. 

Have a great night! 

A Wonderful Day!

 Greetings! Happy Wednesday! I hope everyone is having a great week. 

In Religion class today we talked about boundaries including personal boundaries and what to do if someone crosses our boundaries. We said that we need to yell stop, no, run away, and tell a trusted adult. 

We began a new week of learning in Language Arts; this week we will be reading about people who work to make our communities better. We began by learning two new oral vocabulary words (leadership and admire). We then worked on rereading as we read The Story of Martin Luther King, Jr. From there, we learned how to blend and read words with the digraphs sh, th, and ng. After that we learned our new sight words. Finally, we practiced our new skills as we read Thump Thump Helps Out. 

This afternoon in Language Arts we learned the difference between common and proper nouns. We then practiced identifying proper nouns. 

In Math class today, we learned the names of the solid shapes. The students did an excellent job recalling cubes, rectangular prisms, cylinders, cones, pyramids, and spheres. 

Have a great night! 

Honoring the Saints!

 Greetings! Today was such a beautiful day in first grade as we celebrated All Saints' Day. It was a day were we remember our baptismal call to be saints. 

At Mass this morning, Fr. Brian reminded us about our baptismal call to be saints. He had us all promise that one day we will be saints in heaven. 

After Mass, we went back to our classroom for some Math fun. Today we learned about dividing shapes into halves and fourths (or quarters). We had fun folding our circles, squares, and triangles. 

This afternoon was quite special in first grade as we participated in the All Saints' Day prayer service. The students could not wait to dress as their saint. They sat so reverently around the altar as our 8th grade friends read short biographies about the saints. This prayer service just reminds us even more about our call to be saints through our prayers and actions. Thank you to everyone who attended today. 

Have a great night! 

Fun With Shapes!

 Greetings on the actual Halloween day. I hope everyone had fun trick or treating over the weekend. The children really seemed to have enjoyed it. 

For Religion class today, we headed over to church to practice with our 8th grade friends for our prayer service tomorrow. You are welcome to come and pray with us tomorrow afternoon. 

We wrapped up another week of learning in Language Arts. We practiced using our sight words in sentences. We also practiced reading words with end blends and words with the inflectional ending -ing. To help us build our fluency we partner read a story from our decodable reader booklets. We ended the morning writing sentences using our sight words. 

This afternoon in Language Arts, we took our weekly assessment and identified possessive nouns in sentences. We also worked on our comprehension skills as we answered questions about a poem. 

In Math class today, we sorted shapes. The students worked in groups. Together, they sorted shapes by color, size, shape, number of corners, and number of sides. 

Have a great night! 

Happy Halloween!

 Greetings! Happy Friday! Today was a spooktacular day in first grade. We really enjoyed all of our Halloween activities. 

Before we had our parade and party, we had a few things to do. We finished labeling the parts of a pumpkin. We also prayed the fifth decade of the Glorious Mysteries. 

At Mass this morning, Fr. Brian talked to us about always praying to God. 

After Mass, we got ready for our Halloween parade. It was so nice having everyone outside as we walked around the parking lot showing off our Halloween costumes. 

After the parade, it was time for our party. We played pumpkin ring toss and pumpkin bowling. We also made a pumpkin using beads and pipe cleaners. In addition to our pumpkin, we made a ghost flying through the night sky. We even got to use glitter glue to make stars. 

This afternoon, we relaxed and watched Hotel Transylvania. The students and I really enjoyed this movie. 

Have a great weekend! Don't eat too much candy! 

Pumpkin Fun!

 Greetings! Happy Thursday! I hope everyone had a nice day yesterday and today. It was nice to be back with the children today. 

Our Religion class today was spent in church practicing for our All Saints' Day prayer service. They are doing such a nice job. I can't wait for everyone to experience this beautiful prayer service. After our practice, we prayed the fourth decade of the Glorious Mysteries. 

In Language Arts class, we reviewed our oral vocabulary words, read words with end blends, words with inflectional endings, and our sight. We spent a lot of time today practicing our fluency and comprehension skills. We are working on main idea and key details this week. First we read our decodable reader and then wrote about its main idea and key details. Next, we partner read a story from our decodable reader booklets. Finally, we read At a Pond; after that story we wrote about its main idea and key details. 

In Math class today we continued to look at flat shapes. We reviewed the names we learned yesterday (square, rectangle, triangle, circle, trapezoid). Then, using our geoboards, we made each shape and identified how many sides and corners each has. 

We ended our day with some pumpkin fun. First, we read a story about the life cycle of a pumpkin and then created a diagram showing the stages. Then, we talked about the parts of the pumpkin. We are in the process of making a diagram. We will finish that in the morning. 

Tomorrow looks to be spooktacular! Have a great night!

Pumpkin Fun!

 Greetings! Happy Tuesday! I hope everyone is enjoying our Indian summer. I know the children have loved it! 

In Religion class this morning, we wrapped up our chapter on Adam and Eve. We reviewed how God created Adam and Eve, how they lived in the Garden of Eden, and how they had God's grace. We also prayed the second decade of the Glorious Mysteries. 

Our Red Ribbon Week focus today was on making good food choices. We sorted food pictures based on whether they are a good food choice for us or not. 

In Language Arts, we practiced writing sentences to describe a picture. We also learned our new sight words. After that we read The Best Spot which helped us in reading end blend words and our sight words. We ended class identifying possessive nouns in sentences. 

In Math class today, we took our chapter test on adding and subtracting to10. Tomorrow we will begin our chapter on shapes. 

This afternoon we practiced again for our All Saints' Day prayer service. The students did a great job remembering what we did yesterday. We added more to it today. We are getting very excited for it. 

After our practice it was time for some pumpkin fun. The students helped me carve a pumpkin for our Halloween party on Friday. After carving it, we wrote the steps we followed to carve the pumpkin. Didn't it turn out great? 

Here are pictures from our ghost writing/art project on Friday along with our pumpkin writing from yesterday and today. 

Have a great night! 

Red Ribbon Week!

 Greetings! Happy Monday! What a difference a week makes. Last week it was snowing, and today it was warm and sunny. The children loved the sunshine at recess. 

In Religion class today we talked about how we received God's grace when we were baptized. We also began our last week of praying the rosary together as a class. This week we are praying the Glorious Mysteries. 

We began a new week of learning in Language Arts; this week (and next) we will be reading about different animal habitats. We began by learning two new oral vocabulary words (habitat and depend). We then worked on rereading for understanding as we read Babies in the Bayou. Following that we learned how to blend and read words with end blends. 

Our Math class moved to this morning. Today we reviewed all that we learned regarding adding and subtracting to 10. Tomorrow we will take our chapter test. 

In Penmanship this week we are practicing D and d. 

This afternoon we headed over to church to begin to practice for the All Saints' Day prayer service next Tuesday. Today we practiced walking in and out slowly. 

After our practice, we began our Red Ribbon Week activities. All week we will be talking about making good, healthy choices. Today we talked about what makes us special. To show that everyone is unique and special, we read Spookley, the Square Pumpkin. After reading the story, we talked about what made Spookley special. We then created our own pumpkin and wrote about why it is special. 

Have a good night! 

A Ghostly Day!

 Greetings! Happy Friday! I hope everyone had a great day to end the week. 

Before heading to Mass, we prayed the fifth decade of the Sorrowful Mysteries. Next week, we will pray the Glorious Mysteries. 

At Mass this morning, Fr. Brian reminded us that not only do we need to seek forgiveness from God through the Sacrament of Reconciliation but also from those we have hurt. 

We wrapped up another week of learning in Language Arts. We used our oral vocabulary words in sentences and wrote sentences using our sight words. To practice reading short u words and contractions, we played BINGO. We also took our weekly assessment. 

In Math class today, we used our critical thinking skills to solve problems. We showed how number sentences were true or false by either drawing a picture, using a number bond, or writing a number sentence. We also wrote number sentences when given an answer. 

We wrapped up our unit on animals today. We reviewed the different ways animals move and the different coverings they have. We also reviewed the needs for all animals. 

We ended with several Art and Writing projects. On Wednesday, we read Creepy Carrots. Today we wrote and drew what we would do to contain the creepy carrots. We even added our own Creepy Carrot to the writing. 

To get into the Halloween spirit, we read a story about ghosts. We then wrote about what we would do if we were a ghost. We painted a ghost using forks. Once those are dry, we will add our eyes, nose, and mouth. 

Here is a picture from the fall writing we did earlier in the week. 

Have a great and relaxing weekend! 

Community Helpers!

 Greetings! Happy Thursday! I hope everyone had a nice day. 

In Religion class today we talked about how grace is God's life inside us. We also prayed the fourth decade of the Sorrowful Mysteries. 

In Language Arts class, we reviewed our oral vocabulary words, practiced reading short u words, contractions, and our sight words. To help us build our fluency we partner read a story from our decodable reader booklets. To help us build our comprehension, we read a nonfiction piece about different types of homes and completed pages in our close reading companion. We ended class by using singular and plural nouns in sentences. 

In Math class today we worked with writing fact families. Students came up with the parts for a given whole and then wrote the fact family for their number bond. We also used our critical thinking skills to write number sentences when given a whole list of numbers. 

We ended our day with Social Studies. Today we learned about community helpers. The students completed a Seesaw activity where they took a picture of themselves and added features to show what they want to be when they grow up. They even recorded saying what they want to be. 

Have a great night! 

An October Snow!

 Greetings on this chilly and snowy Wednesday! The children were so excited to see the snow this morning. They clapped and cheered as we added the first snowy day to our weather graph. 

In Religion class this morning, we talked about how Adam and Eve lived in the Garden of Eden and how they were stewards of God's creation. We then talked about how we can care for God's creation just like Adam and Eve did. We ended class by praying the third decade of the Sorrowful Mysteries. 

In Language Arts class, we reviewed our oral vocabulary words, segmented words into sounds, read short u words, contractions, and our sight words. We then spent time building our fluency and comprehension. We partner read a story in our decodable reader booklets. We also read The Pigs, the Wolf, and the Mud. After reading that story we wrote about its characters, setting, and events. 

In Math class today we looked to see whether a number sentence was true or false. 

Have a great night! 

An Early Winter!

 Greetings! Happy Tuesday! I don't know about you, but I am not quite ready for this cold weather. I guess Old Man Winter just could not wait any longer. 

We began our day by going to church for Adoration. We spent some quiet time praying to Jesus. When we came back, we prayed the second decade of the Sorrowful Mysteries. 

We continued our week of learning in Language Arts. We began by reviewing the oral vocabulary words we learned yesterday and then learned three new words (collapsed, furious, and refused). We then worked on making predictions as we read "The Three Little Pigs". After that we used our letter tiles to spell and read short u words. Following that we learned how to write and read contractions for is; we even wrote sentences using the contractions. Next, we practiced using sight words in sentences. We ended our morning focusing on comprehension; this week we are working on character, setting, and plot. We reread Cubs in a Hut and our decodable reader. After each story, we talked about the characters, setting, and events in the story. 

This afternoon in Language Arts we focused on singular and plural nouns. We sorted words based on whether they named one or more than one. We also talked about how to make a noun plural when it ends in -s, -ss, or -x (add -es). 

In Math class today we used our knowledge of facts to solve a problem. We wrote a number sentence with a missing part. Then, using a related fact we solved that problem. 

Have a great night! 

Fact Family Fun!

 Greetings! Happy Monday! I hope everyone is doing well and had a nice weekend. 

In Religion class today we talked about how God created Adam and Eve and how they lived peacefully in the Garden of Eden. We also prayed the first decade of the Sorrowful Mysteries. 

We began a new week of learning in Language Arts; this week we will be reading about buildings. We began by learning two new oral vocabulary words (shelter and materials). We then worked on making predictions as we read Three Little Dassies. After the story, we learned how to blend and read short u words. Following that we learned our new sight words. We then worked on our fluency as we read Cubs in a Hut which helped us practice reading short u words and our sight words in a story. We ended the morning working in our small reading groups. 

This afternoon in Language Arts we learned how to tell the difference between singular and plural nouns. We also wrote about why we love fall. 

In Penmanship this week we will be practicing writing A and a. 

In Math class today, we learned how to write fact families. We used the numbers in a number bond to write the two addition and two subtraction sentences. We also created a fact family house showing the facts in the fact family. 

Have a great night! 

A Visit with the Firefighters!

 Greetings! Happy Friday! I hope everyone was able to enjoy the beautiful fall day we had today! 

We began our day with our first Faith Family Mass of the year. Today, Fr. Brian talked to us about how we need to avoid sin and turn to God. 

After Mass, we had a fire drill with the firefighters. The students did a great job of exiting the building quickly and quietly. They enjoyed seeing the firefighters, hearing about fire safety tips, and trying on some of the fire gear. 

After the fire drill, it was time to jump into Language Arts. We used our oral vocabulary words in sentences, read short e words and words with the inflected ending -ed, and wrote sentences using our sight words. We also took our weekly assessment. We ended the morning by practicing finding nouns in sentences. 

This afternoon in Language Arts was focused on firefighters. We talked about the different jobs firefighters do, the different tools they use, and about how some departments have fire dogs. We then wrote about what we would do if we were firefighters and added our writing to a craft. 

In Math class today, we reviewed writing subtraction sentences for real world problems. Next week, we will be writing fact families. 

In Science class, we talked about how some baby animals look like their parents and how some baby animals look different than their parents. 

We ended our day with Art class. Today we created a bat. We accordion folded the wings and added colored wiggly eyes. Here is a picture! 

Have a great weekend! 

Fire Safety Tips!

 Greetings! Happy Thursday! I hope everyone had a nice day on this rainy day. We had a busy day in first grade. 

We began our day by meeting with our Faith Families. We spent time getting to know each other and praying with them. Once we came back, we prayed the fifth decade of the Luminous Mysteries. 

In Language Arts class, we reviewed our oral vocabulary words, segmented words into sounds, read short e words, words with the inflected ending -ed, and our sight words. To help us with our fluency and comprehension, we partner read a story in our decodable reader booklets. We also read The Red Hat. After reading this story, we completed pages in our close reading book that focused on the events in the story. Finally, we practiced finding nouns in sentences and using commas in a series. 

In Math class we practiced solving real world subtraction problems. The students use many different strategies to solve these problems. 

We ended our day with Social Studies. Today, we focused on fire safety tips. We talked about getting out and staying out and going to our meeting place. 

Have a great night! 

National Bring Your Teddy Bear to School Day!

 Greetings! Today was National Bring Your Teddy Bear to School Day, and first grade had tons of fun celebrating the day. We began our day by making a teddy bear crown and writing about our special friend and introducing our special friend to the class. 

With our special friend on our desk, it was time to learn. 

In Religion class, we reviewed our chapter on God making us with a body and soul and on how God gave us guardian angels to help us. 

In Language Arts class, we reviewed our oral vocabulary words we learned yesterday and then learned three new words (astonishing, fortunately, and equipment). Next we worked on making predictions as we read a nonfiction piece about community helpers. Following that we used our letter tiles to spell and read short e words. After that, we learned how to blend and read words with the inflectional ending -ed. Then, we practiced using our sight words in sentences. We ended our morning focused on comprehension; this week we are working to identify the characters, setting, and events in a story. We reread Good Job, Ben and our decodable reader. After each story, we talked about its characters, setting, and events. 

This afternoon in Language Arts we worked on finding nouns in sentences. We also practiced finding nouns in the classroom. The students walked around and took pictures of three nouns and uploaded the pictures on Seesaw. They really enjoyed this activity. 

In Math class today, we continued to practice writing subtraction sentences for a picture. 

We ended our day with more teddy bear fun. The other first grade class came and joined us for a bear hunt. We also had a teddy bear picnic which consisted of a trail mix and teddy bear juice and tea. Fun was had by all! 

Here is a picture of my bear that I brought in today. It is the very first bear that I got. It has been well loved. 

Have a great night!